Browse Articles
Discover research articles across all indexed journals
Left ventricular septal convexity in differentiating hypertrophic cardiomyopathy from hypertensive heart disease – a cardiac magnetic resonance study
Association of type 2 diabetes mellitus with histopathological features of Non-metastatic breast cancer in Chinese women: a retrospective Cross-sectional study
Abstract Breast cancer and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are prevalent global health concerns, often sharing overlapping pathophysiological mechanisms. This study aimed to characterize the association of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) with the histopathological features of non-metastatic breast cancer in Chinese women and evaluate whether glycemic control, diabetes duration, and treatment were involved. A retrospective cross-sectional analysis was conducted on 924 patients with stage I–III ductal breast cancer, equally divided into diabetic (n = 462) and nondiabetic (n = 462) groups. Patients were stratified by fasting blood glucose (FBG) levels, use of metformin and insulin, and diabetes duration. The expression of hormone receptors estrogen and progesterone (ER, PR), human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), Ki-67, histological grade, lymph node metastasis, and pathological tumor node metastasis (pTNM) staging were analyzed. Diabetic patients exhibited a higher incidence of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and a lower incidence of HER2-positive breast cancer compared to nondiabetic patients. Poor glycemic control (FBG ≥ 10 mmol/L) was associated with a higher risk of TNBC, histological grade III disease, and lower ER-positive rates compared to those with FBG < 6.1 mmol/L. Patients taking metformin had an increased likelihood of TNBC and decreased ER-positive rates. Insulin-treated patients demonstrated a lower prevalence of pTNM stage I cancers but a nearly fivefold increase in ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS). Those receiving combination treatment of metformin and insulin were also more likely to present with DCIS. Patients with a longer diabetes duration (≥ 7 years) had significantly lower risks of TNBC and HER2-positive breast cancer but were more likely to have ER- and PR-positive subtypes and histological grade I tumors. These findings highlight the impact of T2DM, glycemic control, and diabetes management on the molecular and histopathological features of non-metastatic breast cancer. While associations were identified, causality could not be determined due to the cross-sectional design. Understanding these associations could guide tailored treatment strategies for diabetic breast cancer patients.
Quantum ghost imaging of transparent birefringent patterns with phase singularities
Functional divergence of conserved developmental plasticity genes between two distantly related nematodes
Abstract Genes diverge in form and function in multiple ways over time; they can be conserved, acquire new roles, or eventually be lost. However, the way genes diverge at the functional level is little understood, particularly in plastic systems. We investigated this process using two distantly related nematode species, Allodiplogaster sudhausi and Pristionchus pacificus . Both these nematodes display environmentally-influenced developmental plasticity of mouth-form feeding structures. This phenotype can be manipulated by growth on particular diets, making them ideal traits to investigate functional divergence of developmental plasticity genes between organisms. Using CRISPR-engineered mutations in A. sudhausi mouth-form genes, we demonstrate examples of the various ways ancestral genes regulate developmental plasticity and how these roles can progressively diverge. We examined four ancestral genes, revealing distinct differences in their conservation and divergence in regulating mouth phenotype in both species. Loss of certain genes results in similar developmental disruptions in both species, while for others they are distinct. Additionally, two ancestral genes retain their functions as switch genes, which completely prevent a phenotype, and the other two display quantitative effects, with knock-outs in these genes displaying intermediate phenotypes. Remarkably, despite the evolutionary distance, all genes examined were involved in mouth-form regulation. Finally, key sulfatase-encoding genes act downstream of the other genes, suggesting they play a major role in mouth-form plasticity. Together, this study represents the first mutant-based functional analysis of the evolution of developmental plasticity between two highly diverged species, offering new insights into the genetic mechanisms underlying phenotypic evolution.
Research on the impact of the urban park built environment on physical activity
Abstract Urban parks provide important places for the public to engage in physical activities. However, certain aspects of the built environment may affect residents’ physical activities in these parks, and these aspects may vary depending on the city context. Studies have not yet fully explored the factors affecting physical activities in urban parks in Chengdu, China. Furthermore, an in-depth analysis and exploration of the causes behind how the park environment affects physical activity is lacking. This study focused on five urban parks in Chengdu City. Specifically, logistic regression was applied to questionnaire data to study how the built environment of the urban parks affects the duration and frequency of residents’ physical activities. The results indicated that the built environment of the five parks has a significant effect on both duration and frequency. Specifically, the primary factors affecting the duration of physical activities include sanitation maintenance, plant landscape, the presence of a playground, site facilities, lighting facilities, and public toilet facilities. The frequency of physical activities is significantly impacted by pathway maintenance, the playground, pathway width, pathway length, site facilities, and water quality management. The study also explored the causes of how the built environment affects physical activity, proposing several design strategies. These strategies include improving the quantity and quality of the park site and facilities, designing suitable roads, maintaining the environment, and providing an attractive landscape.
Role of metabolomic changes in diagnosis and assessment of treatment response in acute myeloid leukemia
Joints with angle dependent damping can help to reduce impact forces in robots
Abstract This paper investigates how a new angle-dependent damper design can help a robot to reduce collision forces. We designed a fluid-viscous angle-dependent damper by smoothly changing the clearance between the stationary and moving parts. Analytical and numerical simulation-based predictions were experimentally tested. Analytical modelling shows that angle-dependent damping has a $$48\%$$ reduction in peak forces when compared to constant damping. Numerical simulations show that variable-gap dampers can change damping by $$134 \times$$ during a $$10 \times$$ gap change. The experimental findings confirm the analytical predictions by reducing collision force by up to $$10\%$$ . These findings suggest that the angle-dependent variable damping solution could be used for robots that experience collisions such as industrial robotic manipulators, legged robots, perching robots, or robots that catch moving objects.
Rescue of male infertility by human PRSS55 in transgenic mice establishes a contraceptive research model
Abstract The development of non-hormonal male contraceptives requires validated preclinical models. This study investigated whether human orthologs of two mouse testis-specific serine proteases, PRSS55 and TMPRSS12, both essential for male fertility in mice, could functionally rescue the infertility phenotypes of their respective knockout mouse lines. We generated transgenic mouse lines expressing human PRSS55 with either an extracellularly or intracellularly positioned C-terminal 3xFLAG tag (RES GPI or RES TM), and a line expressing human TMPRSS12 with a C-terminal 3xFLAG tag (T12 RES), all on their respective mouse null backgrounds. Fertility was assessed through continuous mating trials, and sperm parameters were evaluated. Both hPRSS55 rescue lines sired offspring; RES GPI males exhibited partially restored fertility with significantly fewer pups per litter compared to controls, while RES TM males demonstrated fertility comparable to controls. In contrast, T12 RES males remained infertile, exhibiting severe defects in sperm motility and other parameters, despite confirmed transgene mRNA expression. These findings indicate that human PRSS55, particularly when tagged intracellularly, can functionally replace its mouse counterpart, validating the RES TM line as a promising model for testing human PRSS55-targeted contraceptives. The inability of hTMPRSS12 to rescue fertility highlights challenges potentially due to sequence divergence or unconfirmed protein expression levels.
Partial feature reparameterization and shallow-level interaction for remote sensing object detection
Analysis of the prognostic and immune role of MCM6 in pan-cancer and experimental validation in lung adenocarcinoma cells
Podocyte extracellular vesicles and immune mediators as urinary biomarkers in active lupus nephritis
FTIR based assessment of microplastic contamination in soil water and insect ecosystems reveals environmental and ecological risks
Synthesis and properties of carbon quantum dots as an antimicrobial agent and detection of ciprofloxacin
Daily insider threat detection with hybrid TCN transformer architecture
Development and interpretation of a machine learning risk prediction model for post-stroke depression in a Chinese population
Association between cardiometabolic index and self-reported symptoms of obstructive sleep apnea: a cross-sectional study
A randomized controlled trial of graded exercise rehabilitation enhances diaphragm function and exercise tolerance in patients with AECOPD
Shared and distinct patterns of cortical morphometric inverse divergence and their association with empathy in dancers and musicians
Abstract Neuroimaging research has demonstrated that long-term dance and music training can induce structural changes in the brain. However, most previous studies have focused on isolated structural metrics, neglecting the interregional similarities across cortical areas. In this study, we applied a novel morphometric measure, Morphometric Inverse Divergence (MIND), to assess cortical structural similarity in individuals with professional dance or music training. A total of 89 participants were incorporated in the study, including 25 dancers, 24 musicians, and 40 healthy controls (HC). Our findings showed that both dancers and musicians exhibited higher MIND values compared to HC, with musicians displaying significant differences particularly in the default mode network and somatomotor network. Furthermore, MIND values between the insula and superior parietal lobule, as well as between the superior frontal gyrus and cingulate gyrus, were positively correlated with the total IRI score and the Fantasy subscale. Both shared and distinct MIND patterns were identified between dancers and musicians. Musicians exhibited greater structural similarity in auditory cortical regions, whereas dancers showed increased similarity in visual and kinesthetic areas. Importantly, only the dancer group demonstrated a significant association between MIND values and empathic imagination. These findings provide new insights into how long-term artistic training influences cortical structure and social cognitive abilities.